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Trailer weight capacity question.

Mopardude

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Jun 15, 2011
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Location
Elkhorn, WI
I have a flat bed trailer, bumper pull style with a grvw of 7000 lbs. What I want to know is how is the grvw determined? The trailer has 3500 lbs axles is this how they how they got the 7000 lb rating? The trailer it self weights around 2500 lbs leaving me with about 4500 lbs carrying capacity which a full size 3/4 truck about maxes out. The bed and frame of the trailer are quite beefy on par or better than some 5th wheel setups I have seen. Could I boost the GRVW of my trailer by getting beefier axles? The particular trailer I have is marketed more as a car hauler/utility trailer so the bed is relatively low to the ground and the wheels are on the sides of the bed. To step up to more of a Utility/equipment type of trailer with a higher GRVW the beds sit a lot higher because the wheels are right under the bed. Which I am not to fond of as I haul a lot of vehicles plus my own.

Picture of trailer below.

ramontrailer1.jpg
 
Yes, two 3500 lbs axles means 7000 lbs load which also includes the weight of the trailer and any payload you put on it. You also need to take into consideration the tongue weight of your hitch and what the load is plus what it can pull. That said, it looks to me like you have your hitch overloaded with the truck you have on it and pushed all the way to the front of the trailer.
 
You can increase load capacity by #1 going to a higher rated [load range] tire #2 up grading to 6/8 lug axles, heaver springs, 15/16 inch tires [but you are still restricted by the frames designed rating] at least that is how our trailers are [boat trailer manufacturer] the I beam size restricts the carrying capacity [4400# trailer has 3 1/2 x 4 inch I beam frame its rated to 4400#] you could put 8k under carraige under it and it's still a 4400# trailer due to the frame size. Tongue weight is 6-10% of weight of loaded trailer.
 
That said, it looks to me like you have your hitch overloaded with the truck you have on it and pushed all the way to the front of the trailer.
I know everyone always says that when they see that pic I think the truck and trailer are sitting in a dip or something. The Blue dodge that is hooked to the trailer in that pic is my father's, it is a 3500 cummins and has 2 add a leafs installed and normally pulls a 15k lb 5ft wheel camper and it never sits like how it does in that pic. This post is like 3 or 4 years old and was taken right after I just got the trailer and we were testing what it could do. All I remember was when we loaded my truck on the trailer at my house we were on flat ground and it didn't effect his truck at all. I am not even really sure why the truck is sitting as far forward as it seems because I know we would not have loaded it like that.
 
You can increase load capacity by #1 going to a higher rated [load range] tire #2 up grading to 6/8 lug axles, heaver springs, 15/16 inch tires [but you are still restricted by the frames designed rating] at least that is how our trailers are [boat trailer manufacturer] the I beam size restricts the carrying capacity [4400# trailer has 3 1/2 x 4 inch I beam frame its rated to 4400#] you could put 8k under carraige under it and it's still a 4400# trailer due to the frame size. Tongue weight is 6-10% of weight of loaded trailer.

Well I guess that is the point I failed to make when I wrote this post. The next size trailer up from mine from this same manufacturer if my memory serves me right is a 10K trailer. It is the exact same frame as mine only it has 5K axles and it also has the same crappy low load range tires on it, but I do believe they were either a 6 or 8 lug axle. I assume it would have had heavier springs but I really don't remember after all this time. That's why I was kinda confused about this. Its really doesn't matter any more, I was going to get into hauling stuff for my uncle and needed to be able to carry more but I decided not to pursue doing that kind of thing. It wasn't worth what it was going to cost me to be legit about it with the proper insurances and licenses and whatever else to do it part time. Not to mention I would have had to upgrade truck and trailer too.
 
Yeah, I have a buddy of mine (worked for him before I retired from the refinery) that has a small trucking company and he wanted me to drive for him but after looking at all the regs and things that I had to do to be legit, told him I'll pass lol. Just getting the commercial license is a pita by itself plus, iirc, I wouldn't be able to carry my firearm even though I'm licensed to carry.....
 
I owned a hotshot service back in 95 [boat hauling] and D.O.T. for the most part left me alone didn't need a CDL or log book and i was subbing so they covered my insurances and trailer needs however when i parted ways with them i was going to do my own thing insurance for 1 mil. coverage was 2500$ a year a new trailer designed to do what i did was 20-25k i already had the truck 525$ a month payments then on top of that was all the other little legal things so i too sold the truck and got a regular job.
 
I owned a hotshot service back in 95 [boat hauling] and D.O.T. for the most part left me alone didn't need a CDL or log book and i was subbing so they covered my insurances and trailer needs however when i parted ways with them i was going to do my own thing insurance for 1 mil. coverage was 2500$ a year a new trailer designed to do what i did was 20-25k i already had the truck 525$ a month payments then on top of that was all the other little legal things so i too sold the truck and got a regular job.

Yea trucking pays good but you either have to go all in or nothing it seems. I work in custom cabinetry and during those years I posted this we where way slow because of the economy only putting in 32 hr work weeks barely, and laid off a bit too.

Don't get me started on insurance. I just opened my own shop doing cabinetry and furniture I am still only in the hobby business stage, I still have to work my main job yet to finance everything. But getting the insurance I needed was a pain in the ass. One insurance company told me I didn't have the experience to do what I want to do so they weren't going to cover me. I been working professionally as a cabinet maker/woodworker since I was 18 I am 38 now (20years). Than if you count my time in high school (3years), when I just did shop BS because wasn't old enough to run machinery. Than if you count the 10 years or so I been building stuff in my garage for people. I asked the guy if that's not enough experience for you what is? He had no comment. Than there was a bunch of other stupid shit here and there that other companies rejected me for. Took a while but I finally found a company that would insure me.
 
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